Or they could avoid charges if they build plants in a third country, but the costs might again be prohibitive.

Although Chinese manufacturers could bring the case to US courts, they may not be able to afford the costs up to $1 million.

Yang suggested Chinese enterprises undertake more innovation and establish their own patents.

The case was initiated by Unilin, a Dutch flooring company, and three US flooring manufacturers, which filed petitions in US court asking that investigations into Chinese flooring products be launched to see if they were in violation of article 337 of US tariff law.

Legal experts say that an article 337 violation is even more severe than that of a dumping charge, as it means the product will be totally blocked from the US market.

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